Our Donations Help Others

Special Childrenâ€™s Charities of Chicago is the fundraising organization of Special Olympics Chicago. Special Olympics provide a competitive forum for thousands of special athletes here in Chicago every year. Both were founded in 1969 for athletes competing in everything from gymnastics to tennis, basketball to track and field.

Benton Community Settlement carries a proud tradition that can be found in the smiles of our children, the competitive nature of our young adults, and the satisfaction and appreciation that abounds in the sentiment of our seniors. We are a not-for-profit settlement home that has operated for over 90 years with many childrenâ€™s programs but few funds. The programs offered include, but are not limited to: Summer Day Camp, Kiddie Time (pre-school program), Begin again Moms, Father & Son Floor Hockey, Saturday Play Camp, and Storytime.

Salverredy Family

In 2013, The Salverredy family of Darien was nominated and selected as the “host family” to partner with One for the Kids for our 5th Annual Cocktail Party. Julio and Rachel Salverredy are the parents of two boys: Jaden (9 years) and Ryan (6 years). Last summer, they were excited to learn that they were expecting another child, this time a girl. Shortly after learning of her pregnancy, Rachel began to experience respiratory distress, including coughing and shortness of breath. By early December, her symptoms intensified and her lung collapsed. She was transferred to the Intensive Care Unit at the University of Chicago. Rachel was in critical condition, required a ventilator and was fully sedated for weeks to allow her lungs to heal. Amazingly, and against all odds, Rachel has recently begun to recovery. Their daughter, whom they named, Hope was born premature, but appears to be thriving.

With the help of family and countless friends, Rachel was able to attend the One For The Kids cocktail party in her honor, on April 20th. Though she remains on oxygen to help with her shortness of breath, Rachel was able to take a turn on the dance floor with her husband Julio. He acknowledges that his wife and newborn daughter have a long road ahead, but he prays, “this miracle continues.”

Host Family Update:

The Salverredy Family of Darien was the host family for the Annual Cocktail Party in 2013. When we first introduced the Salverredy’s, their story captured our hearts. Mother Rachel was preeminently residing in the Intensive Car Unit of University of Chicago with complications caused by her third pregnancy. Her lungs had recently collapsed and she was on a ventilator. Due to the stress on her body she was being sedated for several weeks to hopefully give her growing child enough time to develop. As the families’ story unfolded, all that could be done was to watch and wait for a hopefully happy ending.

Rachel and Julio Salverredy’s daughter, Hope, was born just weeks before the event in their honor on April 20th 2013. After giving birth Rachel’s symptoms started to ease and she was able to be home for her son’s birthday. Though her lungs were still very weak and her heart sustained some damage from the ordeal, she was showing signs of improvement.

With the help of family and countless friends, Rachel was able to attend the One For The Kids cocktail party. As her family expressed often “Rachel is not one to miss a party!” Though she remained on oxygen to help with her shortness of breath, Rachel was able to take a turn on the dance floor with her husband Julio. She quickly returned to her oxygen tank for support, but it was obvious that all she wanted to do was dance.

Since the cocktail party, Rachel has needed to stay on her oxygen most of the day and throughout the night while sleeping, but a recent Angiogram that showed her heart has completely healed. The doctors were shocked and couldn’t believe what they were seeing, she was not expected to recover this quickly. Rachel has returned to her daily routine leaving this strange health scare in the rear view, but she still has a few setbacks to overcome. Her lungs are still weak and her family is just taking it one day at a time.

Hope was still in the hospital at the end of May, but she was taken off oxygen Friday 5-17-13 and they were monitoring her breathing for a while. The Salverredy’s cannot wait to get her home. Lets keep the prayers coming and more updates to come.